Air strikes intensify anxieties among Israelis, Palestinians

Hugh DelliosTribune foreign correspondent

Israeli and Palestinian officials reacted with apprehension to the U.S.-led bombing of Afghanistan on Sunday after the primary target, alleged terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden, tried to link his cause with the fate of the Palestinians.

Israeli officials tried to calm fears that Israel might be the target of retaliatory attacks, but officials said they expected Palestinian demonstrations in support of bin Laden similar to the massive street-level support they gave Iraqi President Saddam Hussein during the Persian Gulf war in 1991.

A key question for Israelis is whether the air strikes and bin Laden's attempt to rally Arab support would encourage Islamic radicals and others to step up the year-old Palestinian intifada, while Palestinians worry that Israel might use the strikes as cover to crush the uprising. Either way, the strikes pose a serious problem for Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who in recent days has tried to quiet the intifada so he would not be linked with bin Laden.

The streets in Ramallah and other Palestinian cities were mostly quiet Sunday night, partly because of a larger-than-usual Palestinian police presence.

"What America has done is pure terrorism," said Hassan Youssef, a West Bank leader of Hamas, which has been behind many suicide bombings against Israel. "We are pained over what happens to the Afghan people, like they feel pain for our suffering."

Israeli officials appealed for calm Sunday and tried to reassure their people that Israel has nothing to worry about. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon released a statement saying that Israel "had taken all the necessary steps" to protect itself and had offered assistance to the United States.

Nevertheless, Israel Radio said Sharon would meet with top army commanders late Sunday. Israeli officials said President Bush had informed Sharon about the attacks in a telephone call about an hour beforehand.

Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres said Bush had made a "brave decision" and that Israel was praying for "the welfare of the American army and its allies."

"We shall see who will be punished," Peres said. Bin Laden "killed 6,000 people and he wants to kill 6,000 more. We have to get rid of him."

More privately, some officials expressed concerns that Israel would again come under fire, as it did when Iraq fired Scud missiles on Tel Aviv in 1991.

"I've never seen anything good come out of this for us," said one Israeli government official. "Last time, everyone got excited and then it was two days later and the [problems started]."

The Palestinian Authority had no immediate official reaction to the air strikes, perhaps a sign of Arafat's dilemma. In 1991, he joined his people in supporting Iraq, but this time his interests may be opposed to their emotions.

"We condemn strongly that [bin Laden] is using the Palestinian cause as part of his campaign," one Palestinian official said. "We're going to have difficulties convincing people that this guy has nothing to do with our cause. It's a big, big problem."

In a taped statement for Qatar's Al Jazeera television played after the air strikes, bin Laden said the U.S. would not be secure "before peace reigns in Palestine." While he has made similar statements before, the Palestinians had never been his main focus, and this time he even mentioned individual Palestinian cities, such as Beit Jala, that have come under Israeli siege and shooting.

Zakaria al Qaq, co-director of the Israel-Palestine Center for Research and Information, said it was a message that would resonate and impress Palestinians.

"I think this attack promoted bin Laden and his message and activities more than anything," al Qaq said. " I am afraid that Arafat now has a serious problem."